Parallel Lines - A Pokémon One-shot
by Fancyyy
Summary: An Aqua and a Magma met each other, and a sprout of love had grown between them. However, facing the war between Team Aqua and Team Magma, as well as the harsh reality, the relationship is hard to maintain. Will their love be able to prevail in the end, or will they forever be parallel lines that would never intersect with each other?


_"We may be parallel lines,_

 _but I believe in infinity."_

 _\- Chandan Das_

Good and Evil.

Who chooses which is which? Society, the government?

Is good born from evil? Is evil born from good?

Well, that's all a matter of perspective.

These perspectives changed for the two teams of Magma and Aqua. These two teams, seen as the greatest evil in the land of Hoenn, actually sought to do good. Although both were called evil by the public they saw themselves as good and the other evil. With this basis there was no love between Aqua and Magma, until one day the concepts of good and evil did not matter to the two certain people.

They ran into each other on their mission. One Aqua, one Magma.

At first sight, the Magma Grunt sneered at his enemy and brought out his pokemon. The Aqua Grunt looked sad after seeing the Magma Grunt's actions and didn't do anything. This made the Magma Grunt hesitate. "Are you going to battle or what?"

The Aqua Grunt looked up and replied, "What's the point in fighting each other? I have nothing against you."

The Magma Grunt hesitated more. This girl reminded him of his little sister at home, sad and wanting nothing to do with violence. He recalled his Mightyena and started to walk away.

The Aqua quietly watched the grunt from her rival team walk away.

On the way back, the Aqua Grunt's actions were etched in his mind. She was just like him back then, not willing to fight against others in this pointless war. He had the same mindset too, but after facing several brainwashed Aqua Grunts, he had to put on a cover to himself and act fierce in order to defend himself from any danger.

 _Maybe… she's just like me._

* * *

 **A month later…**

Scouting ahead of his party the Magma Grunt once again ran into the same Aqua member. A thought went through his head.

The other Magma Grunts wouldn't leave her alone. I need to get her out of here.

"Run away now. I'm not alone this time, the others will be here soon."

The Aqua Grunt looked at him with a helpless look on her face, "I can't leave. These Zigzagoons are stuck in a trap. They're in danger… "

He looked over and saw a few Zigzagoons stuck in a Pokemon trap set up from his team. Without thinking twice, he went to them and took out a knife. Without much effort, the trap was broken and the Zigzagoons were freed from the trap. The Aqua Grunt happily looked at the Zigzagoons as they ran away from the scene.

The Magma Grunt pulled out a piece of paper and wrote his phone number on it. "Take this. If you ever run into trouble with Magma or anything again, call me and I can help you."

The Aqua Grunt stared at the paper and then up at him, said a silent thanks and ran away before the other team Magma Grunts arrived.

* * *

After finding an excuse and sneaking out of the Magma Hideout, the Magma Grunt took out his handphone, enjoying the little free time he'll be getting.

Suddenly, he noticed a few messages sent to his handphone. He checked them.

It was from an unknown user. [Thanks for what you have done today. I wouldn't know how to get them out of the trap at all. Maybe you weren't so bad after all.]

Immediately, he thought of the Aqua Grunt he saw twice recently. He replied, [No worries. Just glad I could help.]

She replied back almost immediately, [There's never a Magma Grunt as nice as you. Thanks for being there for me despite our team differences and all.]

[No problem. What's your name, may I ask?]

[My name is Lisa. You?]

[Jack.]

* * *

And so, it began. Every day, Jack seemed to always receive messages from her. He was always enthusiastic to reply back. For him, the Magma Grunts were just too… egotistic. The girl he's messaging was always caring, nice and kind to others. He enjoyed chatting with her every time.

One day, Jack was patrolling around the area in Lilycove City. He noticed a Magma Grunt, and walked towards her to see what's up with her. The Magma Grunt noticed him and said, "Hey, it's you."

Jack realised it was Lisa. He was going to reply back, but he suddenly tensed up upon looking at the girl.

 _Why am I acting like this…?_

"H-Hey." that was all he could respond with. Although slightly weirded out by his behaviour, Lisa didn't seem to get bothered by it too much. Jack sighed in relief.

"Hey hey, are you hungry?" Lisa suddenly asked.

"Well, I could use a little treat. Why?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Just about to get some lunch after work, it's the little break time I'll be having for today."

"C-Can I come with you?" Jack suddenly said that without himself noticing.

"Huh? Wouldn't your teammates notice us eating together? You'll be in trouble if they do."

"J-Just don't care about them. Let's go." Jack replied. Lisa nodded as she led him to a small restaurant. The two ordered their meal and received the food in no time. As they ate, no sounds were heard by the two except for the sound of chopsticks colliding with the bowls.

"H-Hey, Lisa?" Jack tried to break the awkward silence.

"Yeah?" Lisa looked up and asked.

"Well, it's just a little awkward around us, I guess." Jack said, feeling a little flustered.

"O-Oh, I apologise. It's just, I never ate with any guys ever since I joined Team Aqua."

"I-I'm sorry about what I asked." Jack apologised.

'Don't worry about it! I'm just not used to eating with guys for a while now. It just feels like… uh…" The young girl started to blush.

"A date?" Jack blurted out, then realised how stupid of a word he just said. He closed his mouth.

After having their meal, Jack was about to say goodbye to Lisa, but Lisa asked, "Jack… Can you come with me?"

Although confused, he knew that the young girl probably won't do anything bad to him. He nodded and followed her to a seaside. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the sea breeze.

"It's my favourite place to chill around. Every time I stay here, I can always be myself instead of pretending to be the fierce Aqua Grunt… although I failed miserably in trying to be like one." She chuckled.

"What happened to you? I can tell you didn't want to be involved in this at all." Jack asked.

Lisa kept quiet, and looked at the sea. After a while, she expressed, "When I was young, Team Aqua invaded my home, and my parents were… gone. They're just gone like that. Then, I was captured by the team, and became a grunt there. I just hated war. It took away my parents, my beloved family. I don't want to be involved in this anymore…"

Tears fell from her face. Jack quietly walked to her and petted her.

"Don't worry. Me too."

"Huh?" Lisa was confused.

"I had similar experiences as you. My parents were going to buy me gifts for my birthday. They never returned. When the doorbell rang, I thought they were back and instead, two Grunts showed up, and asked me to choose either me or my sister to be captured. I can't let my sister do this, so I let them capture me into the Hideout. I still don't know where my parents are, dead or alive."

"Jack… I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry about it. Just some sad memories." Jack showed a bitter smile to the young girl.

The girl gave him a reassuring smile, "This is why I love the sea. When I'm here, all my sad past and my problems seem to disappear while I'm here. The sea has an odd beauty that I love, and this is the place… where I can truly be myself."

Jack looked at the girl. She had been through a lot, yet she was still so helpful and kind. His heartbeat started to increase as he couldn't control himself. He just felt like hugging her for everything she had been through. Besides sympathy, he also had a strange feeling towards the girl.

After watching the sea for a while, Lisa stood up and thanked Jack, "Thanks for being here for me today. You are just the only person I can express to. You chatting with me helped me to forget the hard life as an Aqua Grunt just for a little."

"No problem…" The feelings seemed to be uncontrollable for him.

"I guess I'll be leaving now-"

"Wait, Lisa!" Jack cut her off, and grabbed her hands. Lisa was surprised.

"You've been through a lot. I understand that. When I heard your story, it just felt like… I want to be here for you, and give you a big hug. I feel like… I'm starting to have feelings for you." He confessed to the young girl.

"Will you… go out with me?"

Lisa was surprised. Through chatting with him, she was always feeling the same way towards Jack. She just didn't want to express it to him, as it felt nearly impossible. She still remembered the harsh truth.

"Jack… I feel the same way too, but we can't be together."

"Why is that, Lisa?"

"We are in different teams. What do you think if our leaders know that we're having a relationship?"

They both knew how strict Maxie and Archie were with things like this. If there is further contact with their opposing teams, the person involved will be punished greatly. It's always a hard challenge for two members from opposing teams to form even a good relationship.

Jack knew that too. However, he shook his head. "No, Lisa. I know how hard the road will be for our love. But I don't care. As long as I'm with you, I'll do my best for us to not be discovered. I just want to be with you, Lisa."

"I want to be with you too, Jack. But the truth is harsh. We are like parallel lines, Jack. We would never have a happy ending if we are together."

"I don't want to care about it, Lisa. We both felt the same way towards each other, and we're not going to give up. You trust me, right?"

"But, Jack..."

"Please, don't give up on us, for you, and for me, Lisa."

"Alright... I won't give up." Lisa gave in, trusting the young lad in front of her.

Jack smiled in happiness, and hugged the young girl tightly.

Lisa felt happy too. Although she knew it would be tough, but she had Jack with him, she's not alone.

Together, they'll try to let the sprout of love grow.

* * *

The two were holding hands together, watching the night sky and the beautiful stars. This was one of the only times they could ever be together.

Between the war of Team Aqua and Team Magma, a sprout of love appeared.

Although there were many obstacles, the sprout of love would never give in until the very end.

"Hey, there's a shooting star over there..." Lisa pointed towards the sky. The little things are the ones that really caught her attention.

"Why don't you make a wish? It always says that a shooting star will make your wish come true." Jack said to his girlfriend.

"Well, I do have a wish. I wish I can get out of Team Aqua, and live in a peaceful place without all this war." She started to tear up, thinking about her sad past.

Jack looked into her eyes, and gave her a big hug, comforting his partner. "I know it's been tough, Lisa. I have a wish too."

"Hm? What is it?"

"I wish all this war would end soon enough. I disliked war ever since it took my parents away from this world. After all of this is done, I want to be with you... forever."

She smiled. She knew that although life was tough at that moment, she still had this silly partner that would be here through thick and thin.

They just had experiences too similar to each other. The war between the two teams took away both their parents. After that, they were taken away from their homes to become grunts of the opposing teams.

Life really felt tough, but at least they had each other.

Even if it's just for a little while, a little moment, it felt enough for them.

They will try their best, to maintain this relationship for their loved ones.

"Ring..." Suddenly, Lisa's handphone rang. She picked it up, replied with a few sentences and ended the call. She then turned to face Jack, "I'm sorry..."

Jack cut her from continuing, "I know, Lisa. Just focus on work first, I'll see you tomorrow again... right?"

Lisa nodded and smiled. For Jack, she had the most beautiful smile ever. He couldn't resist as he leaned in and gave her a kiss on the lips. Lisa was shocked at first, but eventually gave in for the kiss, too.

After the kiss, they were both blushing heavily. "I-I'll see you tomorrow, Lisa."

"Y-Yeah... I'll see you tomorrow." She smiled, flustered but happy. Jack looked forward to see her again the next night.

* * *

Jack went back to the Team Magma Hideout. As soon as he got there, another grunt told him to gather up for the Admin's instructions.

After everyone settled down, the Team Magma Admin, Tabitha proudly announced, "Lately, the war between us and Team Aqua has been heating up. However, we have nothing to fear! The Leader of ours has made an amazing plan that will stop Team Aqua from interfering in our plans for good. Everyone should get some early rest tonight, for tomorrow... we're going to ambush Team Aqua!"

The grunts had different reactions. Most of them were cheering that they could finally defeat their rival team, while some discussion had been going on about what the plan could be. Jack started to become worried as he heard the grunts' discussion quietly.

"Hey, what do you think is the plan our Leader thought about?"

"I'm suspecting it to be something about Groudon."

"You got a point, I overheard the conversation between the Admin and the Leader. They said something about finally summoning Groudon and controlling it..."

Jack knew that it wasn't good. If the Leader really summoned Groudon, the Legendary Pokémon, it would go badly to use it against Team Aqua. Rumors were told that Groudon's power was unimaginable.

There would be too many fatalities through this ambush.

 _And... Lisa..._

Thinking about his partner, he didn't think too long before taking out his handphone, trying to send a message to warn Lisa about the upcoming ambush.

"Magma Grunt Jack, what are you doing?" The Admin's voice stopped him from continuing his actions. He bit his lips and turned to the Admin.

The Admin yelled, "Didn't the rules stated that handphones are not allowed in the Hideout?! Hand me your handphone!"

He didn't want to obey his Admin's instructions. The Admin became angrier as he stormed towards Jack, and took his handphone away from his hands.

Jack was upset. Not because his handphone got confiscated, he knew that day would come ever since he kept his handphone secretly. He's worried about Lisa.

 _If what they said is true, Lisa might... No, I can't let that happen... What do I do..._

He sighed, trying to figure out a solution all night but to no avail. He can only pray so hard that everything would end up being fine.

* * *

The ground shook as Groudon's massive steps shook the ground. Behind him marched an army of grunts dressed in red, led by their leader - Maxie. He wore a Blue Orb on his arm, which he used to control Groudon.

They stormed through Lilycove, annihilating businesses and pedestrians alike as all who could run for cover. As Groudon stormed towards the Aqua base the water in front of him dried up, evaporated by intense sunlight.

Aqua had no choice but to come out and meet the daunting force head on. Grunts brought forth their pokemon into a dead locked battle, fangs snapping at their opponent. Groudon simply laughed and crushed humans and pokemon alike under its feet.

The battle should have been quick, Aqua decimated. But Archie wasn't giving up.

"Sharpedo, Hydro Pump!" As it heard its owner's command, the Sharpedo released a desperate Hydro Pump at Maxie - directly hitting the Blue Orb. A loud sound was heard as the ancient orb shattered.

Groudon shook its head as if just awakening, just realizing it had been used as little more than a weapon. It roared and began an all out assault on Aqua and Magma alike. Grunts from both teams ran as fast as they could, hoping to escape the behemoth that fast approached. It looked as though many would fail when Groudon stopped, noticing Jack who fell to his knees in front of the beast.

"Please, Groudon! You're free from getting controlled now, you don't have to keep fighting anymore!"

The Groudon glared at him, examining the stranger in front of him.

"I know you dislike humans for controlling you and achieving their plans for their own good. I just want to say, I'm sorry on behalf of those people!"

Groudon stood still as it listened to Jack.

"But please, not every human here is bad! There are grunts here, forced to do what they hated because of this useless war that brings nothing but harm to our society! So please, for the sake of them, to see tomorrow's sunlight, to be free of all this war and live their normal lives..."

Tears fell from Jack's face as he finished his plea, "Please, let us go and be free!"

Groudon went closer to Jack. Jack closed his eyes, expecting a powerful attack from the Legendary Pokémon. However, after staring at the young lad for a moment, Groudon went away from Jack.

It bellowed a warning cry, warning both teams of the consequences when mortals try to control Legendaries for bad intentions. And then, it was gone. Jack looked at the Legendary Pokémon as it left the scene.

 _T-Thank you, Groudon._

* * *

Everything was finally over. However, the damage caused from this ambush was incurable. Corpses of members of both teams were seen everywhere around the scene, mostly Team Aqua. The remaining members were either standing still, scared of what they just witnessed, or running away from the scene as far as possible.

Jack on the other hand, tried to find Lisa but to no avail. He shook his head, tears forming in his eyes while he tried to deny his imagination.

 _There's no way she would be gone... right? Please, please stay alive for me, Lisa..._

He clenched his fists and repeatedly hit the ground.

 _Why, why does there have to be war?! If there's no war between those two teams, this wouldn't have happened..._

He couldn't find Lisa anywhere around the scene. He was getting devastated, but he got back up as a thought hit him.

 _Maybe... There's still a chance..._

He immediately ran to the seaside. The place where they always spend their time together.

For their secret relationship, it was the spot for their perfect date.

 _"I'll see you tomorrow again... right?"_

 _She promised me to be here again today. She wouldn't leave me like this. Surely..._

He will wait for her at the same spot for the entire day. He's not giving up any hope until this day ends.

Thus, he waited for hours. The sun slowly sunk into the sea and the sky turned darker and darker, finally becoming pitch black.

Still no signs of his partner.

The air turned colder around the atmosphere. But he wouldn't give up. Never.

All he wanted to do was to see her again.

 _"We are like parallel lines, Jack. We would never have a happy ending if we are together."_

 _"I don't want to care about it, Lisa. We both felt the same way towards each other, and we're not going to give up. You trust me, right?"_

 _"But, Jack..."_

 _"Please, don't give up on us, for you, and for me, Lisa."_

 _"Alright... I won't give up."_

 _Lisa, you told me that you wouldn't give up... Please..._

He still hoped for a miracle after hours and hours of waiting. Although he knew himself all along, the sad truth was about to strike him.

Tears started to form in his eyes.

A shooting star whistled across the sky.

The young girl was never seen again.

* * *

The next day, Lisa's corpse was found in the scene. She was there all along, Jack just failed to notice the corpse.

Maybe he did notice her, he just didn't want to accept the truth and let go of her.

He heard from one of the surviving Aqua Grunts, that Lisa tried to save one of her teammates, and eventually took the hit from Groudon and collapsed.

 _Lisa... You're still so silly yet helpful, trying to help your teammates out until the last moment..._

 _Lisa... I'm sorry..._

In a ship, he was holding an ash jar. The jar that contained Lisa's bone ashes.

He was there to fulfill Lisa's wish. To spread her ashes into her favourite sea after she passed away.

He sighed, and opened the ash jar.

"Lisa... From now on, you will finally be free. Free from war, free from the sadness of the cruel world."

The ashes left the ash jar, and finally were spread into the deep blue sea.

He raised his head towards the blue sky, the bright sun. He could see Lisa in the sky, smiling at him.

 _Lisa... I miss you..._

Tears fell from his face, as he continued to drown in memories... with her.

* * *

 **A few months later...**

In a ship, Jack went outside and looked at the sea. It was still beautiful as ever.

He took out his handphone, and typed a message to someone. Throughout these past few months, it was something he would always do, even after he knew that she was... gone. It's already a routine for him to send a message to her almost every single day, even if she's no longer with him.

[Lisa, I went back to the sea where you're currently resting.

Don't you think it's amazing how nature itself formed such a beautiful sight?

I think I'm starting to understand what you mean about the beauty of the sea. Silly me, it took me months to realise it, too, but I can finally feel it.

I just wish you can be here for me for this moment…]

Tears formed from his eyes, and rolled down his cheeks. Even after months, he still missed her. He would always drown in the memories between him and Lisa.

The first time they met and how she caught his attention.

Their first date.

The time where they talked about their backstories at the seaside.

The last time they met, talking about their wishes.

 _"I wish all this war would end soon enough. I disliked war ever since it took my parents away from this world. After all of this is done, I want to be with you... forever."_

 _I couldn't fulfill my own wish. I'm sorry, Lisa..._

Although the time with her was short, she was already etched in his heart... forever.

* * *

A few days later, a lifeless body was found in the sea. The same sea that Lisa's ashes were spread into.

The body later proved to be Jack's. Witnesses saw that the last thing Jack did before passing away was checking his phone and jumping into the sea from the ship.

The strange thing was, when the body was found, Jack had a smile on his face. A smile of... content. Happiness.

His phone was later found to be all broken, but the police department ended up being able to restore his handphone's message history. They thought that his handphone was the key factor of why he made this action.

The moment before he jumped into the sea, a message was sent to his handphone.

It was from... Lisa.

It only had three words.

 **[I love you.]**

* * *

The moment before Jack caught his last breath, he remembered Lisa's last smile towards him. He smiled.

He was finally able to fulfill his wish, and his promise to Lisa.

Just in a short moment, they will no longer be parallel lines anymore.

 _We can finally be together._

 _ **Forever.**_


End file.
